As Charlie Easley waited to see who would be the next head coach of the Nebraska men's basketball team, he heard an interesting comparison to his own game.

"There was something that somebody said, that I'm a high school version of Coach (Fred) Hoiberg," Easley said Monday. "So I looked him up and saw some highlights of him, then it was kind of ironic that he got the coaching job."

One of the city's top prep players will play for Hoiberg next season. The Pius X standout announced Monday afternoon he will walk on with the Nebraska men's basketball program.

Easley was one of the best players in the state as a senior, leading the Thunderbolts to the Class B state championship while averaging 23.3 points, 6.1 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 3.1 steals per game. He led the Thunderbolts in all four categories.

I’d like to thank God, my family, coaches, and teammates for helping me become the person and player I am today. Thank you to the coaches who have recruited me. I’m excited to announce I will be pursuing my academic and athletic career as a walk-on at the University of Nebraska! pic.twitter.com/YXdtCTu9ic

“If Charlie grows some more with the skill level he already has, the sky’s the limit for him in college,” Pius X coach Brian Spicka said earlier this spring.

The 6-foot-2 Easley was receiving interest from a number of schools, including South Dakota, South Dakota State, North Dakota State and SIU-Edwardsville, and many of the Division II schools in the region. The Division I schools were hesitant to move forward, Easley said, so he decided to make his move across town.

"I always liked Nebraska," Easley said. "I mean, it's in my hometown, and everything just felt right, so I just decided to pull the trigger. I'm 100 percent happy with Nebraska, and it's a dream come true for sure."

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Easley had 25 points, 12 rebounds and six assists in the title game. He averaged 21.6 points in Pius X's three tournament wins.

"I had a phone call with (Hoiberg) and he just told me, 'If you can shoot, you can play in my system.' And he's going to give everyone a shot — walk-on or scholarship," Easley said. "And that's all I can ask for, so I'm excited to get to work."

He is the second walk-on to join the program since Fred Hoiberg was hired as head coach, joining Elkhorn South's Jace Piatkowski. And with Creighton Prep's Akol Arop, NU now has three Nebraska natives on next season's roster. He'll join his new teammates June 10 when Nebraska starts summer workouts.

When he does, it will be the realization of a life-long dream to play Division I basketball.

"That's always been the main goal, and I think I've proven I can play at this level," Easley said. "I'm just going to go into Nebraska and work my hardest and see what will happen."

Briefly

Nebraska senior James Palmer was selected to the first-ever NBA G League Elite Camp in Chicago next week the University of Nebraska announced Monday. The league provides an opportunity for top-40 players not originally selected for the NBA combine to be invited.

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Bobby Lutz says Fred Hoiberg is a calm and patient coach who's highly unlikely to harshly criticize a player either publicly or privately. That doesn't mean Hoiberg lacks competitive fire, Lutz says. "I just think he has amazing poise even in intense situations."

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A Ravenna native, Chris covers the University of Nebraska men's basketball team and assists with football coverage. He spent nearly 10 years covering sports at the Kearney Hub and nearly four years at the Springfield News-Leader in Springfield, Mo.

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